Akhilesh Yadav sworn in as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the youngest-ever to hold the office. Mr. Yadav at 38 will be the 33rd Chief Minister of the most populous State. He was administered the oath of office by Governor B.L. Joshi. He took oath in the presence of his father, family members, leaders of various political parties and prominent personalities. Nineteen ministers of Cabinet rank were also administered the oath, besides 29 ministers of state.
The function, held at La Martiniere College ground in Lucknow, was attended by members of SP's first family including Mulayam Singh Yadav, Akhilesh's wife Dimple, Union minister Pawan Kumar Bansal, Congress leader Motilal Vohra, Jaya Bachchan, Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal, INLD leader Om Prakash Chautala, CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat, CPI leader AB Bardhan and industrialists Anil Ambani and Subrata Roy Sahara. As representatives of BSP supremo and former CM Mayawati, ex-cabinet ministers Naseemuddin Siddiqui and Swami Prasad Maurya were also present. Shortly after being sworn in, Akhilesh, a post-graduate in environmental engineering from Australia, said the first meeting of his cabinet will be held in the evening to take important decisions. "Samajwadi Party will fulfil promises made in the manifesto. Law and order will be our responsibility from today. Action would be taken against officers doing injustice," he told reporters here.